Serene

To many people, silence is the solution to a lot of problems in their lives. There is something quite serene to being alone in certain places. I'll admit that I prefer not to be alone in most situations, but there are a select few moments/places where the silence is golden. After all, silence is the real conversation between friends, not the saying but the never needing to say is what counts.

In situations like this, there is nothing like being alone. This is the foyer of The Venetian, often crowded with gamblers and tourists, it's rare to be able to get a photo with absolutely nobody around. For a split second, it is as if you own the place, and you're not sharing it with anybody else.

Leonardo Da Vinci once said "If you are alone you belong entirely to yourself. If you are accompanied by even one companion you belong only half to yourself, or even less, in proportion to the thouglessness of his conduct; and if you have more than one companion, you will all more deeply into the same plight.

Read more...

Light Show

Perhaps the hardest type of landscape to capture is cityscape at night time. The lights from buildings are contrasted against the dark shadows and a lot of the time it doesn't turn out the way you want it.

The easiest way to capture a night landscape is to use a long exposure on a tripod. This was a 5 photo HDR merged with Photomatix Pro 3 and processed in Photoshop CS3. It's a slightly different representation of HK harbour, with much more contrast and mood than what you normally see. Personally I quite like the big white halo of light suspended above the main tower, I actually have no idea what it is (but it's in most of these photos).

In any major city there will be photo opportunities like this, but here's my list of what I think are the best for night landscape:

- Las Vegas (Casinoes, bright lights, interesting personalities ... what more do you want?)

- Macau (like a mini Vegas, great if you're not 21 or can't afford Vegas)

- Paris (Art, fashion, culture)

- Beijing (those Olympic buildings look great at night)

- Alaska (aurora borealis ... enough said)

So ... if you live in or near these places, what are you waiting for? If I were you I'd be out night after night trying to improve on my shots. After all, Sydney only gives you a certain amount of options before you get sick of it.

Read more...

Why not

Every so often, we feel an urge to do this ...

Yes, you do

Maybe you don't go through the thought process of "I don't feel like waiting for the traffic on my side to clear so I'm going to take my bright red scooter through absolute chaos and see if I make it"

But surely there have been times where you just go "I'm going do something completely out of the ordinary just because I feel like it". Every once in a while, something like this will happen even if it makes no sense whatsoever.

Have a look around you, you'll see examples of this all over the place.

Maybe I'll even be there to photograph it ...

Read more...

Photomatix Pro 3 (finally got rid of 2.5)

I finally decided to update my HDR software. The one I've been using since I discovered HDR was Photomatix Pro 2.5, I now use Photomatix Pro 3.13 (or something like that). The differences are subtle, a slightly modified UI (User Interface), and the menus are in language that the layman can understand (more or less).

To understand why computer generated HDR images are necessary, we have to get a little more technical. To start with, a camera with a higher dynamic range allows you to capture more detail in the highlights and shadows of scenes. When you look back at your images, you may notice blown out highlights (that stay white no matter what you do), and dark shadows (that stay black no matter what you do). A camera with a higher dynamic range will actually give you some detail in those parts.

This is getting more and more important as a lot more people (from a wider market base) are buying DSLRs. Traditional film has a dynamic range of approx 15 stops, the dynamic range for my EOS 50D is approx 8.5 stops. To get around this massive shortage of dynamic range, us digital users can do 2 things:

1) Live with it (and you actually can ... most of the time)

2) Take a few photos. Underexposed, correct exposure, overexposed (doesn't need to be in that order)

Once you have taken those photos, a program like photomatix can be used to blend all of them. After minor adjustments, we end up with a photo like the one above. There is detail in every single part of the photo (where there is supposed to be). At 100% view on the original edited photo, the detail is astonishing.

Apart from getting an incredible amount of detail, you can get quite a nice effect on the photos as well. Give it a try.

Read more...

Undiscovered

It's true when people say that you can make a good photo out of nothing. With the right timing, right inspiration and the right processing you can do a lot with some very ordinary photos. The pano above is a little different to what I normally do, I tend to be conservative and keep my photos looking as real as possible. In this case, I went crazy with the levels adjustments, masks, and colours ... and ... I like it. If not for the moment of madness, this pano would NOT catch your eye the way it did (don't pretend it didn't) and you wouldn't even take a second look at it.

This HDR is another example, the subject is more interesting, but there isn't a whole lot to it. After processing in Photomatix Pro, I played around with the sliders in CS3 until I created an effect that I was happy with. It's all about trial & error, and when you finally get the right blend of elements you'll be very surprised with what you've created.

Both photos were taken in Vietnam when I was on holidays earlier. I tend to dig back at my old photos in the hard drive and find undiscovered potential like these two photos. To the photographers out there that snap as much as I do (more than 1000/month), then keep them safe in an external hard drive ... keep looking back as much as you can, every now and then you'll be rewarded.

Read more...

A different light

How often do we see works of art, buildings, even fashion where its merely an appropriation of a previous successful model. When you look closely, there is often only one major change, along with several subtle alterations that give the impression of something fresh and unique.

The first example will show how correct cropping, levels adjustment and presentation will give the impression of a photo that's better than it actually is.

Shot taken with my ancient EOS 400D (Rebel XTi), Tamron 17-50mm f2.8. It is also a 3 shot HDR, merged together with Photomatix Pro, then cropped and bordered in Photoshop CS3.

The second example shows how careful colours adjustment, levels, and masking can produce a very eye catching thumbnail. I said thumbnail because in sites such as flickr, the thumbnail in albums and group pools are tiny, so it needs to make people curious enough to click on it.

This photo was taken with the same gear as above. It's a 4 photo panorama, stitched together in Photoshop CS3, then minor colour, contrast, sharpening combined with a bit of masking. It almost gives the effect of an IR photo, which not many people do. I'd love to experiment with IR, but I'm just not game enough to mess with my 400D sensor (even though it's my 2nd body).

If anyone knows how to convert their sensors to IR, let me know and I might consider having a go at it haha.

Read more...

Close to the end

less than 24hrs until freedom. Free from uni, lab reports, assignments, exams, pracs for a month. Doesn't sound like much, but I've been looking forward to this for a LONG time. Hopefully I'll find the time to do more shooting, work some extra shifts, scan some of my old photos as digital media etc. There's plenty to do, and very little time, but I'll make the most of it.

While I was thinking about the things I'll be doing in these upcoming holidays, I rummaged through the external HD where I keep all my photos and found an old favourite.

This is a photo taken from UTS Tower level 27 (most people will know UTS tower as one of the ugliest yet iconic buildings in Sydney) facing towards Central station. It was also back when I was still using my EOS 400D. I had to reprocess the colours/tones/crop/HDR as I've developed a new style of editing since. Overall, it's not the greatest photo, its not the sharpest, and doesn't show a whole lot of detail either ... but I just really like this photo, and I don't know why.

As I write this I should really be studying for my CSI exam tomorrow morning, so I'll keep it short.

Handy photo hint: Right when you think you can't get a new perspective of the city (or anything landscape), get up high (really high), and you'll get some unexpected results.

Read more...

From the past

I've decided to continue on my HDR craze, this was done using auto-exposure-bracketing (AEB) handheld. On occasions where there's a fair bit of shade and a strong sun blaring down, HDR is often the way to go in terms of getting detail in every part of the photo.

This is a picture of an old Vietnamese war tank, similar to the Type 59 main battle tanks used by the People's Republic of China. And ofcourse, it's nowhere near as gangster as Master P's "No Limit" gold tank seen in the music video "make em say uhh".

With everything going on in the world, so many people are saying "you only hear about what they want you to hear" (about the war). Which is true ... what's more true, is that we are also only seeing what the media giants want us to see, in terms of photos from the war. Sure there have been some graphic and confronting photos in the press, but I'm sure that what we're seeing is tame compared to what's hidden from us.

Of course, people are saying that they WANT to see these photos, and they WANT to hear the untold stories. In my opinion, they only think they want to know, and they're only saying they want the truth because they know they won't get it. People are going to come to me on facebook, on msn, on twitter, text msg (whatever) and say I don't know what I'm talking about. I don't blame you, because this is a pretty polarising issue ... and I'll be the first to admit that I'm curious to know what's being hidden from the public.

I'll even admit that at times I'm outraged with the exaggerated emphasis that the media places on certain issues, Matt John's "scandal" for example, Matty Johns took the fall for EVERYONE in the Shark's organisation, and EVERYONE let him fall.

We all know that the media doesn't always have truth on its agenda, they love rage and controversy ... and why wouldn't you if it was making you $$$. They place an overemphasis on some things, while completely burying other issues under the carpet. Sure it's easy to blame people like James Packer and other media giants, but we should all have a good look in the mirror. Because it's US that fuels their drive, they publish things for US, and whether you like it or not we actually DO want to read that crap. Without us, there is no them ... what's in music if there is no one to appreciate it?

But as always, feel free to read MY crap, and wonder what photo I'm going to publish next, along with what photo's I'm hiding from all of you :)

Read more...

Pano Madness

Within photography there's a very minute niche market. A lot of people attempt it, most people play around with it, very few people are known for it. Yet whenever we talk about landscape photography, panoramas always come into the equation.

Most people will think about panoramas as long sweeping photos of landscape, and done mainly to fit more into a photo. And that's true ... in most cases. But the real reason behind panoramas (for me personally), is to increase detail in my photos. It doesn't make sense when I first say it, but it'll come to you eventually ... I promise. For example, my blog from a couple of days ago, that photo looks more or less like an ordinary photo with ordinary proportions. In reality it was 9 photos stitched into one ... 9 photos at 10mp each theoretically gives you a 90mp photo (in a perfect world). We all know that doesn't happen, but you get the idea and you can really see how detail is increased just by stitching photos together.

The panorama above IS a traditional panorama, but I did it to get sharper detail in the background. I quite like how the row of trees separate the peacefulness inside the area and the complete chaos on the outside (photographically speaking and in reality).

So my children, go forth and stitch up your photos, you'll be surprised with the results. But ofcourse, I can't end this post without mentioning the master of panoramics ... and he is indeed Ken Duncan.

Read more...

"If you've lost somebody,

Put a lighter in the air"

There are 2 things that many people fear. The first is to lose a loved one, the next is the fear of becomming irrelevant after death. In my case, both these questions have almost equivalent Which brings me to the question, if I died tomorrow, would you remember me? Have I done enough in my time here to create a lasting impression?

Ofcourse your closest family and friends will always remember you, as with colleagues and acquantances. But what about the wider demographic? Will children walk past my grave and not even be curious enough to read what's on the gravestone? Or will they turn to their mother and ask who I was. Is that mother going to be able to come up with an answer, or will she simply say she doesn't know. Or will people one day walk past my grave and say "Yep, he made a difference"

By the end of your time on earth, you are either a hero or a statistic. I do not want to become a statistic, I need to be remembered for making an impact and immortalised in memory. R Kelly has his music, Kobe Bryant has his basketball legacy, Ken Duncan has his photography, and Tutankhamun has a pyramid. I need mine ...

The priest from a funeral I went to today made a very interesting point. On every gravestone is your birth date and the date of your death, separated by a hyphen. Which means all the events that happened between the day you were born and the day you passed away, is represented by - ... How does that make you feel? In my lifetime I could have solved world hunger, redeveloped the urban environment to make it more ecofriendly, single-handedly stopped cyclones and tsunamis ... and that hyphen will still be there, a single stroke representing the period of my existence.

I'm not ready to go, nor am I ready to let anyone go ... and I'll strive towards that immortality for as long as I'm able. By the way, no hyphen for me, no dates either ... I'd much rather be an enigma, a mystery, a legacy.

p.s. If I end up achieving some of the things mentioned in the post, I'd like my own pyramid :)

Read more...

City Nights

This post is slightly later than usual, and there's good reason for that.

The day began with early arrival at uni to study for the Phys Chem 1 exam that night. Tackling Physical Chemistry is like ... trying to break through the great wall of china with your head. Im serious ... haha nah it wasn't that bad.

The walk from uni to the station brought out a new perspective of the city on a friday night. Friday night at the city, you don't really think about photography, but here it is ...

This photo was taken from George St, Sydney with a fairly long shutter speed and converted to B&W using photoshop CS3. Times like this I do wish that I had the EF 16-35mm f/2.8L, the photo would look considerably better in terms of composition.

On a side note, the Lakers took a 3-1 series lead against Orlando in the NBA finals ... you can get the recap here. Also, don't forget to have a look at these images full size and feel free to comment on the blogs ... you don't need to be registered to comment (I think) :)

Read more...

A distant reminder

The first sign of a true winter ... max temps of 14 degrees for the day.

Todays photo will serve as a reminder of what I will be missing out on until winter is over.

Camera: Canon EOS 50D

Lens: Tamron 17-50 f2.8

Settings: Various - 7 photo HDR

And yes, I have continued my recent craze of HDR photos. This photo was taken during a sunrise photoshoot at Long Reef. That day we went beach hopping from one to the other catching different aspects of the sunrise from different angles. The actual sunrise wasn't the greatest, but scenic shots of the beach and the coast turned out quite well. Unfortunately, it is definitely something that I won't be doing this winter.

On a side note, the long awaited Panasonic Lumix LX-3 has arrived. Haven't had a chance to take many photos with it yet, but hopefully I'll have something up tomorrow. I must say, on first handling, it's an impressive camera.

Read more...

Disparity

There is a vast disparity betweeen the rich and the poor in today's world. A lot has been made about this gap in the United States ... but it's everywhere and you can see it even down the street from where you live. At the end of the day, the rich are definitely getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer ... if that's possible. Simple example, the best basketball player in the world Kobe Bryant made approx $40mill USD this year from his contract with the Lakers and endorsements. Yet there are still plenty of people suffering from "the recession" and everything is going downhill. NB: Most people in the giant salary range are often deserving of it, so that may not have been the best example.

This photo is a modern day example of this range, taken in Vietnam during my trip in the holidays

Camera: Canon EOS 50D

Lens: Tamron 17-50mm f2.8

Settings: Various - 3 photo HDR, made using Photomatix Pro 2.5

There is such a polarising difference in the elements within this photo. There are relatively large homes (most of which are 3-4 storeys high) in stark contrast with undeveloped grassland which resembles a waste dump.

Now that I've mentioned it, see if you can find examples of this in your world. Believe me, it's not that difficult.

Read more...

Holidays

There isn't too long until semester break in uni, so I thought I would process some of the photos taken from my last holidays.

Camera: Canon EOS 50D

Lens: Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8

Settings: 1.3 Sec, f/4.5, ISO 100

Location: On top of a rooftop in HK

I really like this shot because half the photo has the cars and minibus frozen in time while the other half of the traffic is doing its own thing. It depicts the usual industrial area in HK, which tends to be fairly busy no matter what time of the day it is.

Camera: Canon EOS 50D

Lens: Tamrom 17-50mm f/2.8

Settings: 10sec, f/6.3, ISO 100

Location: Rooftop in HK

Again, the view from up top is quite interesting, showing a typical skyline in the industrial areas of HK. The refraction and reflection of light from the dust/water particles in the air gave the photo a gritty glowing effect. This was a combination of 5 photos, stitched cylindrically using Adobe Photoshop CS3.

Meanwhile, if your in Sydney, you should really check out Vivid ... a short walkaround the city during this time should get you some nice shots.

Read more...

Crack of Dawn ... among other things

As for State of Origin Game 1 ... that's all in the past. I can complain all I like about the video ref decision with regards to the 1st Jarryd Hayne try ... or even the crap stripping calls or even how I really dislike JT. But I looked back and found a photo from way back, and remembered that there's still games 2 & 3 to be played.

Lens: Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8

Settings: 0.5 Sec, f/32, ISO 100

The tamrom was an awesome lens, fast, good quality but didn't quite have the range I wanted for a walk around lens. So on my recent purchase of the Canon EF 24-105mm f4L, I sold the Tamron. The only other issue I had with the Tamron was the noisy auto focusing, which DOES matter in situations like weddings.

Back to the photo, the sun came up at just the right time, and you can see it crack over the clouds, almost as if to say "I know you've been waiting for 2hrs, so I'll give you a nice pose to make it all worthwhile"

On a side note, I've decided on the compact camera to buy. The Lumix LX-3 beat out the Leica C-Lux 3 with the features of manual control, wider angle & more fps HD vid. I figured the ideal camera in my situation was the Leica D-Lux 4, but the Lumix is literally an identical (close) camera for half the price. About 30mins ago I put that camera on order, and if all goes to plan I'll have it ready for State of Origin Game 2 :)

As soon as i get the LX-3 I'll be posting the images up for all to scrutinize.

Read more...